Parashat Devarim (Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22) By Rabbi Minna Bromberg “Kyewwwwww!” my nearly two-and-a-half year old daughter shrieks as she grabs hold of the object of her desire and lifts it high above her head. It is purple and spongy and covered in red polka dots and it is, in fact, a capital letter Q. To say that “Q” is her favorite letter would not be quite accurate. “Q” is actually, as far as I can tell, the only letter she knows.... Read more
Starting Points & Destinations on our Journeys (Parashat Massei, Numbers 33:1-36:13) By Cantor Ken Richmond A middle school history teacher once asked my class why people immigrate; our suggestions all fell under her simple overarching answer, that people immigrate in search of a better life. Almost all Americans, the Jewish community included, are descendants of immigrants; many of us have stories of how our families came to the United States. My Zayda, Sol (Shleime Zalmen) Richmond, was born in the... Read more
Parshat Pinchas, Numbers 25:10-30:1 By Rabbi Jane Kanarek About ten years ago, I was introduced to two books that have become part of my must-read list: Women Don’t Ask and Ask For It. Written by Linda Babcock and Sara Laschever, these books describe the cultural reasons women do not often ask for what they want, the costs of not doing so, and strategies for negotiation. In contexts both personal and professional, these books teach women how to ask and, in... Read more
Parshat Pinchas, Numbers 25:10-30:1 By Rabbi Gray Myrseth As a person who grew up in a relatively non-observant Jewish home, with little to no Hebrew, I used to only know the fourth book of the Torah as Numbers. This title calls to mind an orderly census-taking, a linear and rational accounting. And to be sure, there is plenty of counting in the Book of Numbers, but that tidiness is a thin veneer over the turmoil, wandering, crying out, and transformation... Read more
Parshat Balak (Numbers 22:2-25:9) By Rabbi Dan Judson This week’s Torah portion contains one of the more famous verses from the Torah, “How good are your tents Jacob, your dwelling places Israel/ mah tovu ohalekha Yaakov, mishkanotekha Yisrael” The context for the verse is the unusual tale of Balaam. Balaam is a foreign prophet who is called to curse Israel by Balak, a king who fears Israel’s might. But every time Balaam comes to curse Israel, blessings come out. In... Read more
Parashat Chukkat (Numbers 19:1-22:1) By Rabbi Leora Abelson When June rolls around, I feel a certain sadness that contrasts with the natural world, with the bursting of life in the temperate northeast where I live. June is when the trees are in full flower, the grass is thick, and the days are long. This joyful context means it always takes me a minute to remember why I feel sad—because my grandfathers died in June, both of them, and even though... Read more
Parshat Korach (Numbers 16:1-18:32) By Rabbi Or Rose In this week’s Torah portion, Korah (after whom the reading is named) and other prominent members of ancient Israelite society brazenly challenge Moses and Aaron’s leadership, resulting in the dramatic death of the rebels through supernatural means (16:31-35). Over the centuries, biblical interpreters have explored the figure of Korah, a member of the Levite tribe and Moses and Aaron’s cousin. What inspired this man to challenge his divinely-appointed relatives? Why did he... Read more
(Parshat Sh’lach (Numbers, 13:1-15:41) By Rabbi Gray Myrseth And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron and the whole congregation said to them, “I wish we had died in the land of Egypt or that we had already died in this wilderness!” (Numbers 14:2) Fear is not an animal. It is not warm. It does not bend. Once the ocean bent beneath my hand. Was it that simple? Yes. The crabs and fish felt the dawn of... Read more
Parshat Beha’alotecha (Numbers 8:1-12:16) By Rabbi Emma Kippley-Ogman “Mai shamayim, what are the heavens?” asks the Gemara about the second day of Creation when earth and heavens came to be separate entities (Ta’anit 12a). “An old teaching answers: esh umayim, fire and water. The Holy Blessed One scrambled them together each in the other and made from them the firmament.” אש ומים becomes שמים, the letters themselves combining to make something new out of these essential elements. We imagine that mixing... Read more
Parshat Naso (Numbers, 4:21-7:89) By Rabbi Daniel Klein In his book Lost Connections, Johann Hari shares a fascinating and, for me, paradigm shifting study about the connection between work and mental health. The study, done by Australian scientist Michael Marmot in the 1970s, shows that workplace stress and depression is highly correlated to the amount of control people have over their work. The more control a person has over her work, the less stressed and depressed she will be. I believe, as... Read more
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